Arturo Garza will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the 2015 killing of his pregnant girlfriend.

Garza pleaded guilty to the killing of Susanna Eguia on the first day of his capital murder trial, which proceeded with the sentencing phase. State District Judge David Stith read the jury's verdict to a packed courtroom Thursday afternoon.

Members of Arturo Garza's family gasped when it was revealed he'd get life in prison without parole rather than the death penalty.

"This is not closure for us," said Christina Alvarado, Eguia's sister. "Nothing changes. This is just the end of a chapter for us. It does not change the damage you have done. It does not bring back Susanna. It does not bring back Juliette."

Jurors began their deliberations Wednesday afternoon.

Eguia's body was found in a garage covered in dried blood in May 2015.

In a statement late Thursday, District Attorney Mark A. Gonzalez said the verdict - the first of its kind under his administration - would be "instructive" on future capital cases his office handles.

Around the time of the killing, Garza was upset because he believed Eguia, 27, was prostituting herself online, something she denied, according to prosecutors. Prosecutors described Garza as becoming violent over time toward the woman.

"I want this to be a lesson to every woman," Abe Limon, Susanna's best friend of five years, said. "They need to know that if you're praying out there for a sign to get out, this is it. Because enough is enough."

Limon told the Caller-Times he and Eguia used to have Nextflix marathons; they'd binge watch shows like "Desperate Housewives," "Pretty Little Liars," and "Once Upon A Time."

"It's just so unreal now," he said.

Prosecutors said Garza took Eguia to a garage and beat her to death. The beating is believed to have lasted hours.

Jurors were shown graphic photos of Eguia's bloodied, bruised body.

To Patricia Gonzales, the images of Eguia's broken body, shown to jurors during the seven-day trial, seemed more like a movie than a reality.

"To me, that wasn't her," Gonzales said. "That was not my daughter."

Garza's attorneys argued he should get life in prison, the only other option available in capital murder cases. His attorneys urged jurors to consider Garza's difficult childhood as they pondered a sentence.

They said he wouldn't be a threat to society behind bars.

Rick Rogers, one of Garza's lawyer, said he knows cases like this are difficult for jurors, but believes "they followed the law" in making their decision in this case.